So Rome was amazing in all of the ways that we expected it to be, and also in some smaller ways. There is the monumental ruins of a still impressive Roman civilization, the pomp and granduer of the historic Papacy, and the picturesque peace of the fountains and piazzas where artists still sit and sell paintings ( as they paint them) as they have done for hundreds of years. We loved the streets and buildings of Rome, and were humbled by the tour of the Christian catacombs, just outside of Rome. Its hard not to be awed by Rome, old and new, and we count ourselves lucky to be one of the millions who have experienced it. Also, our whole trp could be considered a tour of Rome, since at no time in our travels from Cairo, to Jerusalem, to Istandul, to Athens, to London (we will stop there for a 12 hour layover and pop over to Big Ben), were we ever outside the reaches of historic Rome. It makes it all the more amazing to think of a group of dedicated men from a small jewish area that took on the power of Rome and eventually won by losing thier lives for a message worth living and dying for.
We are excited about heading home: First stop: DFW, where we have some exit counseling with Mission Resource Network and some visits with friends, then Tulsa to visit family and say hello to our Park Plaza family, and then Nashville, where we are moving back to.
Thanks for your prayers and love-
TJ and Holly
Sunday, September 21, 2008
Thursday, September 18, 2008
Roaming around in Roma
Venice was beautiful, but cold. Somehow, living in the Dominican for two years has left us without warm clothes or any real appreciation for being chilled to the bone. We left Venice (reluctantly) and headed to Chinque Terre, a string of five coastal villages famous for thier severe and beautiful cliffs, terraced vineyards, olive groves, and the 12K hiking trail between them. We took a train all night to get there, and froze to death trying to catch a few winks in the tiny station of Parma, but in the morning we were stretching our legs, ready to do some hiking. It was beautiful and while we were tired, the lure of italian gelato at the next village kept us going on.
From there, we headed to Firenze, known to us as Florence, home of Michelangelo and the birthplace of the Renaissance. The Pontevecchio bridge, il Duomo, and the Uffizi museum were all on our list, as well as a trip to the Academy gallery , where Michelangelo's David looms large and impressive. The town is beautiful and still holds much of its 15th century character, as well as wonderful food. We stopped at Ciro & Sons (thanks for the recommendation, Michael!- Pepe says to kiss your boys for him) for some amazing pasta and the famous Bisstecca Florintina- a T-bone steak about as big as your head and three fingers thick- cooked crispy on the outside and bleeding on the inside. Needless to say, Holly didnt help much with finishing it off, but outside of Abilene TX, it was the best steak I have ever had.
We just made it to Rome, and ate dinner before a walk past the famous Trevi Fountain. Tomorrow starts the full-on greatest hits of Rome tour, as we try to fit it all in before we fly back to the States on Sunday evening.
Were having a eye opening, romantic, and educational time (how rare for those two adjectives to go together...) but we will be just as excited to get back to our home countr (deflated dollar aside) and see friends and family that we have missed and look forward to being closer to. See yall soon!
TJ (and Holly)
From there, we headed to Firenze, known to us as Florence, home of Michelangelo and the birthplace of the Renaissance. The Pontevecchio bridge, il Duomo, and the Uffizi museum were all on our list, as well as a trip to the Academy gallery , where Michelangelo's David looms large and impressive. The town is beautiful and still holds much of its 15th century character, as well as wonderful food. We stopped at Ciro & Sons (thanks for the recommendation, Michael!- Pepe says to kiss your boys for him) for some amazing pasta and the famous Bisstecca Florintina- a T-bone steak about as big as your head and three fingers thick- cooked crispy on the outside and bleeding on the inside. Needless to say, Holly didnt help much with finishing it off, but outside of Abilene TX, it was the best steak I have ever had.
We just made it to Rome, and ate dinner before a walk past the famous Trevi Fountain. Tomorrow starts the full-on greatest hits of Rome tour, as we try to fit it all in before we fly back to the States on Sunday evening.
Were having a eye opening, romantic, and educational time (how rare for those two adjectives to go together...) but we will be just as excited to get back to our home countr (deflated dollar aside) and see friends and family that we have missed and look forward to being closer to. See yall soon!
TJ (and Holly)
Monday, September 15, 2008
2 words...
We got to Athens, dashed to Corinth, missed our bus, almost missed our next train, ate the last spinach flaky pastry thing of our trip (I love those things), headed to Patra, Greece to board an overnight ferry to Brindisi, Italy. We spent all night sleeping (can we really call it?) on the deck of the ship, got into Italy two hours late, missed our train to Napoli, caught a later one, got into Napoli late at night and realized that Napoli (famous for crime and gangsters) really does look like NewYork, pre-Guiliani- dirty, trashy, seedy, but likeable in that Tony Soprano sort of way. After scarfing a pizza at du Michelle (famous? Id rather have a chicago style any day) we hit our first bed in 48 hours and woke up early to catch a train to Pompeii. We were really running late, since we had hoped to be in Venice by then, but we had a great hour and a half in the astounding, amazing, ghostly ruins of Pompeii. We almost missed our train back to Napoli, got there in time to eat at McDonalds (funny)and board the next train to Venice. So... here we are, and we have to say that it was worth it. Two words:
Venice Magic
Thereàs just nothing like this place- truly a floating city. I didnt expect to love it, but at the first sight of a bridge and a water taxi and those nearly crumbling building façades, I was hooked. We are here for a day and then head to Florence, Chinque Terre, then Rome, then home ( where is that,again?).
love yall,
TJ
Venice Magic
Thereàs just nothing like this place- truly a floating city. I didnt expect to love it, but at the first sight of a bridge and a water taxi and those nearly crumbling building façades, I was hooked. We are here for a day and then head to Florence, Chinque Terre, then Rome, then home ( where is that,again?).
love yall,
TJ
Thursday, September 11, 2008
Revelation
When we were last able to update, we were in Rhodes, the ancient base of the Christian crusaders. From there, we headed to the tiny little island of Patmos, where it is believed that John (whether the apostle or another John) wrote the book of Revelation. We climbed the footpath headed to the famous monastery of the apocalypse, where the Orthodox christians have set up a shrine and a little chapel in a hillside cave thought to be the very place of John's inspiration. There are three cracks in the top of the cave, thought to be the representation of the Trinity, made by the voice of God during the revelation. There was a Mass going on, so it was interesting to watch all these people crowded into this little cave. The island is tiny- you can see both sides from nearly any hill, and beautiful- it looks more like parts of Colorado than Greece, with pinetrees covering the hillsides.
From there we headed to Kusadasi, Turkey, right outside of the ancient site of Ephesus. It was absolutely stunning to see these ruins, which are some of the best preserved in antiquity. You can literally see every part of the town, and imagine it filled to the brim with worshippers of the World-wonder Temple of Artemis (which Paul ran in to trouble with...) The ancient theatre where Paul and his buddies were hauled off and made to stand for thier "blasphemies" is completely intact, and still used for concerts (Sting was there a few weeks ago). Being there made the ancient world more tangible than any other spot we visited.
From there we headed to Istanbul, sailing up through the Bosphorus with Asia on our right and Europe on our left. It was a truly modern city, that felt more like NewYork than Cairo- which suprised us. The people there are mostly secular, and even now, during the holy month of Ramadan, we rarely saw anyone with headscarves or taking time out during the call to prayer. Everyone seemed really excited that we were from America, and wanted to know about where we lived. Again, we were really impressed with Turkey and would definitely come back for a longer stay. We saw the Hagia Sophia, the Blue Mosque, and the famous Grand Bazaar (anyone want a fake rolex or a Prada bag?). The Hagia Sophia was awestriking- when it was built, it was the biggest buildings in the world, and is ornately decorated with mosaics and paintings from both the Muslim and Christian eras(It has changed faiths several times- up until the 30s it was still a working mosque, but now a world-heritage museum.
Today we head back to little Mykonos, an island made famous by Aristotle Onassis and his jetset friends, and then we go back to Athens, where we will catch a train to Corinth, hop off for a little biblical sightseeing, and then catch an overnight ferry to Italy.
Wish us luck- no real setback so far, except Holly fell, chasing a bus in Antalya, Turkey, and skinned up her knee, and I got a wallet stolen on the ship. Both were less dramatic than they could have been and we feel grateful that everything has gone as smoothly as it has! Thanks and Love, TJ and Holly
From there we headed to Kusadasi, Turkey, right outside of the ancient site of Ephesus. It was absolutely stunning to see these ruins, which are some of the best preserved in antiquity. You can literally see every part of the town, and imagine it filled to the brim with worshippers of the World-wonder Temple of Artemis (which Paul ran in to trouble with...) The ancient theatre where Paul and his buddies were hauled off and made to stand for thier "blasphemies" is completely intact, and still used for concerts (Sting was there a few weeks ago). Being there made the ancient world more tangible than any other spot we visited.
From there we headed to Istanbul, sailing up through the Bosphorus with Asia on our right and Europe on our left. It was a truly modern city, that felt more like NewYork than Cairo- which suprised us. The people there are mostly secular, and even now, during the holy month of Ramadan, we rarely saw anyone with headscarves or taking time out during the call to prayer. Everyone seemed really excited that we were from America, and wanted to know about where we lived. Again, we were really impressed with Turkey and would definitely come back for a longer stay. We saw the Hagia Sophia, the Blue Mosque, and the famous Grand Bazaar (anyone want a fake rolex or a Prada bag?). The Hagia Sophia was awestriking- when it was built, it was the biggest buildings in the world, and is ornately decorated with mosaics and paintings from both the Muslim and Christian eras(It has changed faiths several times- up until the 30s it was still a working mosque, but now a world-heritage museum.
Today we head back to little Mykonos, an island made famous by Aristotle Onassis and his jetset friends, and then we go back to Athens, where we will catch a train to Corinth, hop off for a little biblical sightseeing, and then catch an overnight ferry to Italy.
Wish us luck- no real setback so far, except Holly fell, chasing a bus in Antalya, Turkey, and skinned up her knee, and I got a wallet stolen on the ship. Both were less dramatic than they could have been and we feel grateful that everything has gone as smoothly as it has! Thanks and Love, TJ and Holly
Sunday, September 07, 2008
Colossal
So here we are in Rhodes, a greek island off the coast of Turkey, with an amazing history of Greek, Roman, and Byzantine rule. The Colossos of Rhodes was one of the seven wonders of the ancient world, and even though it is no longer standing, the place where it stood, and where ships could pass under it into the harbor, is Rhodes' largest tourist attraction.
We were in Crete and Santorini yesterday, soaking up some sun and history of the Pre-Greek Minoan civilizations that flourished there. Historians believe these people were forced off of thier islands and onto the coast of Palestine... where they became the biblically famous "Phillistines".
The day before that we were in Athens, walking the same marbled steps that Socrates, Plato, and St. Paul's feet helped polish. It was amazing to see the size and power of the Acropolis- its no wonder that people chose that rock to worship the gods they knew. Also amazing is the restoration work that has gone into Athens... its a great city- huge, but friendly, and has tons of interesting sights at every turn.
Tomorrow we head to Ephesus and Patmos, to walk some biblical history and get a sense of St. Paul and St. John's stomping grounds. After that- Istanbul!
Thanks for all your notes and responses- we're having a great time!
TJ and Holly
We were in Crete and Santorini yesterday, soaking up some sun and history of the Pre-Greek Minoan civilizations that flourished there. Historians believe these people were forced off of thier islands and onto the coast of Palestine... where they became the biblically famous "Phillistines".
The day before that we were in Athens, walking the same marbled steps that Socrates, Plato, and St. Paul's feet helped polish. It was amazing to see the size and power of the Acropolis- its no wonder that people chose that rock to worship the gods they knew. Also amazing is the restoration work that has gone into Athens... its a great city- huge, but friendly, and has tons of interesting sights at every turn.
Tomorrow we head to Ephesus and Patmos, to walk some biblical history and get a sense of St. Paul and St. John's stomping grounds. After that- Istanbul!
Thanks for all your notes and responses- we're having a great time!
TJ and Holly
Wednesday, September 03, 2008
Egypt, Jerusalem, Cyprus, Turkey
Sooo... Its tough to even try telling about how amazing the last three days have been. Still no way to upload pics, but we're trying to figure something out.
We arrived in Cairo a few days ago, hopped on a bus and headed to the National Museum, where the majority of the Tutankamen artifacts are on display. We were really suprised by Cairo- it was dirty and poor in ways that we have never seen before. It truly looked like a war zone, while at the same time the tour guide is telling us that it is a relatively new and upscale area...wow. The national museum has amazing items to display, but looks as though it has not been updated in fifty years or so. No airconditioning, no descriptions of the items, no lighting... the artifacts are not being protected very well against the tourists or the elements, and while it was amazing to see all of the items, it was astounding to see that they had not invested more into updating a museum with so much potential.
The Pyramids and the Sphinx are unbelievable in their scope and durability. It's amazing how they were built, and to think of a culture that would put that kind of effort into them is mind-boggling as well. Holly and I topped off the trip with a camel ride around the pyramids area, and were so glad to see this amazing site.
In Jerusalem, we were able to visit the old city, Garden of Gethsemane, Mt of Olives, the wailing wall, the Dome of the Rock, the Via Dolorosa (christ's walk to the Cross), the supposed site of the crucifixion and burial (and resurrection!), and ended the day by going into Palestinian territory to see the church of the Nativity in Bethlehem. We couldnt help but feel closer to who the physical person of Jesus and his early followers were, just being in the City of David and imagining Jesus praying among the olive groves. The wailing wall was also moving- to think of the collective sorrow that these people have known, and what we feel is such misguided devotion to a place. The Christian churches were no different, with ritual and gold covering every inch of the supposed holy sites. While it was wonderful, we couldnt help but feel like it is for the Catholic, Orthodox, and Armenian faithful, an expensive excercize in missing the point.
In contrast to Egypt, Jerusalem is oneof the most beautiful, cleanest, and well laid out cities we have ever seen. Everything is easily accesible in english and we never felt unsafe, until we went to the Palestinian area of Bethlehem, which is walled off and enclosed, not unlike the Berlin wall. No Palestinian can go out, and no Israeli can go in. It was definitely an amazing experience going through checkpoints and seeing the level of security the Israelis take. We are inspired to pray for peace in a new way, seeing how divided these cultures have determined they need to be, just for basic safety.
Next we headed to Cyprus, where Holly and I enjoyed some Greek culture and byzantine ruins, as the island was conquered time and time again by the crusaders and the turks. It was beautiful and picturesque, sitting in a sidewalk taverna, splitting a gyro.
Today, we went to Antalya Turkey and caught a bus to ancient Pergamum. It is some of the most preserved ruins in the roman/greek world, and we had fun envisioning the people in thier stone town with colonnaded streets and mid-size stadium. Turkey is beautiful- the people are really warm and friendly, and we had little problem with travelling or figuring out the turkish money (lira). We cant wait to see more of turkey next week with Istanbul and Ephesus.
So... thats all for now... we head to the famous little volcanic island of Santorini tomorrow and we just can't wait!
TJ
We arrived in Cairo a few days ago, hopped on a bus and headed to the National Museum, where the majority of the Tutankamen artifacts are on display. We were really suprised by Cairo- it was dirty and poor in ways that we have never seen before. It truly looked like a war zone, while at the same time the tour guide is telling us that it is a relatively new and upscale area...wow. The national museum has amazing items to display, but looks as though it has not been updated in fifty years or so. No airconditioning, no descriptions of the items, no lighting... the artifacts are not being protected very well against the tourists or the elements, and while it was amazing to see all of the items, it was astounding to see that they had not invested more into updating a museum with so much potential.
The Pyramids and the Sphinx are unbelievable in their scope and durability. It's amazing how they were built, and to think of a culture that would put that kind of effort into them is mind-boggling as well. Holly and I topped off the trip with a camel ride around the pyramids area, and were so glad to see this amazing site.
In Jerusalem, we were able to visit the old city, Garden of Gethsemane, Mt of Olives, the wailing wall, the Dome of the Rock, the Via Dolorosa (christ's walk to the Cross), the supposed site of the crucifixion and burial (and resurrection!), and ended the day by going into Palestinian territory to see the church of the Nativity in Bethlehem. We couldnt help but feel closer to who the physical person of Jesus and his early followers were, just being in the City of David and imagining Jesus praying among the olive groves. The wailing wall was also moving- to think of the collective sorrow that these people have known, and what we feel is such misguided devotion to a place. The Christian churches were no different, with ritual and gold covering every inch of the supposed holy sites. While it was wonderful, we couldnt help but feel like it is for the Catholic, Orthodox, and Armenian faithful, an expensive excercize in missing the point.
In contrast to Egypt, Jerusalem is oneof the most beautiful, cleanest, and well laid out cities we have ever seen. Everything is easily accesible in english and we never felt unsafe, until we went to the Palestinian area of Bethlehem, which is walled off and enclosed, not unlike the Berlin wall. No Palestinian can go out, and no Israeli can go in. It was definitely an amazing experience going through checkpoints and seeing the level of security the Israelis take. We are inspired to pray for peace in a new way, seeing how divided these cultures have determined they need to be, just for basic safety.
Next we headed to Cyprus, where Holly and I enjoyed some Greek culture and byzantine ruins, as the island was conquered time and time again by the crusaders and the turks. It was beautiful and picturesque, sitting in a sidewalk taverna, splitting a gyro.
Today, we went to Antalya Turkey and caught a bus to ancient Pergamum. It is some of the most preserved ruins in the roman/greek world, and we had fun envisioning the people in thier stone town with colonnaded streets and mid-size stadium. Turkey is beautiful- the people are really warm and friendly, and we had little problem with travelling or figuring out the turkish money (lira). We cant wait to see more of turkey next week with Istanbul and Ephesus.
So... thats all for now... we head to the famous little volcanic island of Santorini tomorrow and we just can't wait!
TJ
Monday, September 01, 2008
What to write, what to write...???
First of all, did you know Aussies have NEVER heard of the Outback Steakhouse? Pretty incredible, huh? Our dinner partners are Aussies, and we were telling them all about it. They got a big kick out of the Bloomin' Onion (didn't know what onion rings were) and Alice Springs Chicken. (As there would never be chickens in Alice Springs, apparently.)
In other news:
We've visited the pyramids in Cairo and walked the streets of Jerusalem and Bethelehem since we last wrote. It was awesome and humbling. Cairo was dirty and Israel was clean. We're glad we had just one day in Egypt, and we could spend months in Israel. Mankind has great capacity for wisdom and folly. God is good, and He encourages and sustains us daily, which we are even more aware of as we travel.
In other news:
We've visited the pyramids in Cairo and walked the streets of Jerusalem and Bethelehem since we last wrote. It was awesome and humbling. Cairo was dirty and Israel was clean. We're glad we had just one day in Egypt, and we could spend months in Israel. Mankind has great capacity for wisdom and folly. God is good, and He encourages and sustains us daily, which we are even more aware of as we travel.
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